Huge Support Shown To 4-Year-Old Who Had To Have Part Of Brain Removed
PARKER, Colo. (CBS4) – While many take on a new, shorter hairdo as it gets warmer outside, a group sported bald heads for a different reason on Sunday. People from all over the United States gathered at Welcome Home Brewery in Parker to honor Cameron Barrow.
The brave little boy is only 4 years old, but the amount of support he has is immeasurable.
"He's the sweetest. He's a very sweet boy," his mother, Lauren said with a grin.
Cameron's family discovered he had health problems years ago, and since then the community has been rallying alongside him.
"He was a totally normal baby, and at about 10 months old, we found a brain tumor. It's an atypical meningioma, which turned out to be pretty aggressive," Lauren explained to CBS4's Mekialaya White. "We tried some surgery and he ended up having a stroke during surgery, so he lost some function in his right side ... and the tumor kept growing. We tried some chemo, and it kept growing."
Cameron eventually had a hemispherectomy, and the left part of his brain was removed.
"It stopped the seizures, but now he's got some other neurologic problems," Lauren explained.
He is a fighter, but he's never fighting alone. Not only are friends and family supporting Cameron, they're also supporting childhood cancer research for other patients.
They helped raise awareness with a fundraiser at the brewery, by shaving their heads to raise money for St. Baldrick's Foundation.
"We had so many people out here," Cameron's father Kris said. "They spent their Sunday just to be a part of this event. I would just like to say thank you so much. We appreciate you and we love you. The people that are around us just lift us up and do amazing things for our personal well-being. It gives us the strength that we need to fight for him and the other kids."
"This has been hard, but this is the silver lining to this whole thing. To see the good side of people," said Lauren.
She also says, above all, they are all looking forward with positivity.
"Hopeful, very hopeful because the more that people get together and donate and do this, the closer we get to a cure or even just helping these kids out with supportive care and treatments and things."
The group's goal is to raise $10,000, and you can help if you missed the event. To donate to the Barrow family, or learn more about childhood cancer visit a special section of stbaldricks.org. The foundation raises money for childhood cancer research by shaving heads.
